Friday, June 16, 2017

SPOILER ZONE: Silver Silence

This is the dedicated *spoiler* thread for Silver Silence and earlier books in the series. Spoilers abound, so be warned!!

Usual rules: be kind to your fellow commenters and have fun. This spoiler thread will remain active as long as the blog does, so you can join in at any time. :-)

I don't monitor the thread for questions, so if you have a Q for me, you can email me.

If you're at an earlier point in the series and would like to discuss that book, click on the Spoiler Zone tag and it should bring up all the previous spoiler threads. Some of the earlier books don't have them, but if there's a demand, I'd be happy to set them up. Just drop me an email (nalinisinghwrites AT gmail DOT com).

28 comments
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I gobbled it up on release day, so I am now doing a slower reread. But my initial thoughts…

As I commented before when we were speculating on the hero’s identity, my big worry was that Silver would be yanked out of the PsyNet if it was a changeling and so would no longer be able to work for Kaleb. I loved that Nalini found a way to keep her in the PsyNet and still not give me what I thought I wanted (she’s so very clever that way!). So even though she is no longer working for Kaleb, the fact he’s now part of the Mercant family actually alleviates that concern and we’ll still be able to see Silver and Kaleb interact regularly which is what I really wanted. (I can’t believe that didn’t occur to me as a solution.) So yay for surprises!

I loved that Valentin was sneaky like a cat (so many funny moments) and still remained a gentleman bear. I loved the whole bear clan and the introduction of so many new characters. I didn’t have trouble keeping them straight, but do wish we’d learned Chaos’ real name. I was intrigued by Evanova & Chaos and would like to see a short story or novella about them. Also, Arwen & Pavel and Moira & Leonid. And Anastasia is on my ever-growing list of characters I want stories for.

I am sad about Bo and we’ve a whole year to wait to find out what happens. I am of two minds. On the one hand, he’s one of my favorite characters so I really want him to get his own story. On the other hand, even though a lot of people have been killed over the course of the series numbers-wise, we’ve only had one death in the good guys side where it was someone we knew and cared about and even that was from natural causes. Everyone recovered in Kiss of Snow which made me happy as some of my favorites were in jeopardy, but also felt odd. Yes lots of Psy died in Shield of Winter and many humans in this book, but none we really KNEW. So losing Bowen would be impactful in that sense. But I still really want him to recover and find his HEA.

Does Anthony not know about Clara/Patrick and Stefan/Tazia or was him claiming Max was the only human mind in the PsyNet via his bond with Sophia and the others not mentioned simply to avoid confusion for new readers? I was surprised when Ivy or Kaleb or Aden didn’t correct him.

Since The Human Patriot mentioned the scrambled conferences/meetings, he’s the second of “the Consortium’s top tier” to be unmasked (the first being the CEO in Shards of Hope who owned the shipping yard). So we still have ten more plus the actual Architect to go. I know I am in the minority in that I want Pax to be a bad guy, but he was never on my short list of suspects as being the Architect. Other than Shoshanna who I think is way too obvious, I haven’t put much thought into who it is. I was hoping it wouldn’t be a Psy character, but the fact s/he (a) knows Ena, (b) is well known and recognizable to the general public, and (c) the bad guy here suspects she is a female Psy buts a big damper on it being a human or changeling.

So who is on the suspect list besides Shoshanna? Jen Liu, Payal Rao, Kalini Chastain? I don’t suspect any of the Arrows or Dara Faison or Ida Mill. Though to be fair it’s also possible the character is now someone we’ve met before on page. And/or the clues we have are wrong (but I don’t think so, at least as far as A and B go. C also makes sense and I don’t think Nalini would mislead us so contradictorily). Who do you suspect?

I really enjoyed the romance between Silver and Valentin. I also enjoyed their "re-romance" after the surgery. The plot didn’t play out the way I expected so the book seemed full of small surprises. I hope we get to see more of Galina in future books. I want some scenes between her and her now grown children. That entire subplot broke my heart.

I loved all of the bear puns. And Kaleb’s idea of negotiations. So many fun moments along with a lovely romance.

Watch out for Silver! I love how she stood up to Sergey and Valentin's mom. Go Silver! The pink teddy bear made me laugh. Dima is so cute! I also love the bear gangsters. I hope Bo makes it. He is needed for the Human Alliance.

Whether Kaleb likes it or not, his people are expanding. His baffled response makes me smile.

Some responses to library addict. (note I have not had a chance to read-read it but rather listened through the audiobook three times)I could have sworn that Nova called Chaos by a variant of Alex in the kitchen scene. I do agree they are a cute couple and would be fun for a short story.About Anthony and the net-strengthening couples, It is important to note that only Max and Sophie are known as such and their bond unhidden by the netmind. Stephan and Tazia are under Arrow-grade shielding and Anthony may also still be in the mindset to protect Clara and Patrick as he was the one to help them hide their bond in the first place.As for the architect, I could see it being Shoshanna Scott, But I could also see it being someone like Gia Kahn (considered for council inclusion alongside Faith and Kaleb).I do wonder if the biofusion tendrils would have triggered if the mating bond hadn't been in place. The initial loss of self for Silver post surgery caused me to outright cry. I am so glad that Mr. medvezhonok stuck it out and helped her back.

I could have sworn that Nova called Chaos by a variant of Alex in the kitchen scene. I do agree they are a cute couple and would be fun for a short story.It's been too long since I took two years of Russian in high school. She does at one point call him a diminutive (moy dorogoi Alik) which I think translates to My dear Alik, but is it short for Aleksandr, Adrian, or what? Inquiring minds need to know - lol!

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About Anthony and the net-strengthening couples, It is important to note that only Max and Sophie are known as such and their bond unhidden by the netmind. Stephan and Tazia are under Arrow-grade shielding and Anthony may also still be in the mindset to protect Clara and Patrick as he was the one to help them hide their bond in the first place.I agree with the above if he were making a public speech. But they were in a private Ruling Coalition meeting. I’d forgotten that Anthony helped Clara & Patrick’s bond.

And we know Aden, Ivy, and Kaleb all know about Tazia & Stefan’s bond. They actually know about all three as Kaleb was the one who found them all, then needed Aden’s help to discover Stefan’s identity as he knew it was an Arrow.

Also how public have Sophia & Max gone? I know everyone in DarkRiver and probably most of SnowDancer knows. And Nikita only made Sophia promise to keep it a secret until the fall of Silence. We know a lot of the Empaths know, so I can see where it could now be general knowledge.

So then either they all know about all three or they’re keeping Patrick and Tazia a secret from Nikita for some reason which makes no sense to me. I’m more inclined to say it was maybe just an oops, but confess I emailed Nalini to ask.

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FTR I don't hate the idea of Shoshanna being the Architect, I just think she's too obvious a choice. Then again, she was up to something sneaky when Kaleb went to visit her in London in Shards of Hope. I was actually hoping the Architect would end up being a Changeling since the last secret identity person was a Psy. But the big clue from this book squashed that idea.

I love the book. It has become one of my favorites. Silver and Valentin, such a refreshing couple. This is a truly new beginning for the series. So many more characters and stories and theorys that my head is spinning in excitement waiting for the new book.I hope is Bo because I don't want to be waiting to what's going to happend to him. I really hope he gets well even after the double threat to his life.I also want to known will Nikita and Anthony get their own book? Talking about a powercouple... Also, was this the introduction to new changelingchangelings? I don't remember reading about the mountain ponies before. I love to know more about them and the others the Nalini keeps giving us hints like the lions.

I had some problem with Tp-A as in it not having a natural way to be balanced. I mean even X-psy's have something that can handle their gift (even though revealed just when Sienna goes into flames) - why not Tp-A without the surgery ?? It stuck me as odd.

A J-Psy could theoretically be okay if he/she stopped doing Justice work and rebuilt shields before they crumbled. Just thought that it seemed not natural to have something within the Psy world itself . Evolutionally it makes sense right ? ( Remember the tandem gift in Dev and Katya's story ?).

Since Nalini balances everything in her world - somehow this stood out for me.Can I confess ? I missed hearing more about the NetMind and DarkMind. I want to know how they are. I mean after the honeycomb net - while they are still separate - some pain must have got ameliorated right ? Yes they are missing a crucial part but still ? Surely DarkMind is better than it was ?

I missed reading about Naya / Sascha and Lucas but that was to be expected.I wanted to read about BlackSea and their traitor too. I guess those will come in the next set of books ( One more year ... OMG .. that is going to be one excruciating wait .... )I hope we get to see BlackSea the way we saw the Bear clan ... would love to read about their homes .....

And the book gave lots of questions that still need to be answered in the Psy world !! :)

1. Will the Psy Ruling Coalition take up the gauntlet to put humans and Psy on same par wrt to psychic privacy ?2. Will Bo live ?3. Where does Ming Le Bon figure and what happened to Hawke's plan to get rid of him ?4. Shoshanna seems the obvious person as the Consortium Head but is it too obvious ?5. I know Tatiana is in that hole ... but does Kaleb go to check the stores to see that she is still alive and paying for crimes? How far has the DarkMind éaten' her ? Is that even important ? Maybe not .. just curious ... 6. How is Alice? Will she finally lose her core of sadness ?7. Does Kaleb meet Rowan Kaleb Quinn ? (Short story material ? :) )And so it goes on ...................... See what an incredible world it is ! :)))

I had this thought earlier this morning about Val's dad. I wonder if he was experimented on at the same time as Hawke's dad. Too bad bears think that wolves are "mangy", since Hawke and Valentin could help each other with this horrible part of their pasts. Hawke could help Val with how SnowDancer was able to recover from that. Silver is helping Val heal just as Sienna was able to help Hawke heal.

How many other changelings did the Psy experimented on before the project was shut down? Only Nalini knows, and she's not talking.

Some thoughts. 1. The mating bond going into neutral reminded me of Judd and Brenna's bond. Because the bond for those two existed before Judd removed his blocks, but was in a quiet mode that neither could sense. 2. Ena seems to have a talent similar to Dev. 3. From what I can tell Hawke and Val's dads went quiet at the same time period. I do note that Misha killed psy. Wonder if the people he killed were the ones who mind-raped him.

Loved this book. Nalini have a talent to introduse new people from which we want to know more in the following books. I agree that a story about Arwen and Pasha would be something new. Amara and Bo...well, this would be a "true bomb"(LOL). And yes, I would love it, if Nalini would give them a try. Nikita and Anthony are also still on my wishlist.

I absolutely LOVED this book!!! The bears were sooo cute and stubborn(the gangsters). It was interesting that they were in a way more tactile than any other changeling in the stories (atleast it felt like it to me). I liked the bear cubs so much. The way they just jumped at their alpha without any worries were just pure happy kids.I smiled quite often during this book - and that means a lot. Normally I hate smiling down at my book because i think that to other people it must look strange but this time I just couldn't stop myself. And the pair of this story - Valentin and Silver! The way the alpha tried to be cat sneaky... And Silver so cool and colected but allowing touch. It made ME feel warm and happy when she listened to "the booming laugh that filled the air" of her beloved bear.Than there was Arwen and Pasha it was kinda hard to imagine a lightly blushing Mercant even though he was an E...sooo sweet and the accusation that Arwen has claws of his own was great. I hope we get to see how it progresses between them. Maybe we there could begin new friendships between bears and the wolves in Russia. And if the two stong packs get along like cats and wolves near San Francisco.. I can't wait to see if and how will the teenagers start dating. Oh and what pranks will they come up with!

I guess I'm a little weird, but while I liked this book for the comedic moments and the introduction of new characters, I'm wondering about other earlier characters like Tamar, anyone from the Human Alliance or the Forgotten, Tanique, Miane, and Malachi, Alice, and any followup to Ming LeBon. (After all, he HAS to die, according to Hawke ^_^)

I'm sorta curious how the Merchants hid(?) Silver's brother(?) since he is an E of a certain level. Noton a high level, but how did they keep him and have him not being rehabilitated or stuff. How did the Merchants avoid being sucked into the Council. They were pretty powerful, but how did they just not go into Council substructure?

I'm also sorta curious about Selenka(?) of the wolves in Russia. We only saw the poor bears and Valentin and his pursuit of Silver in thie book. I'm also wondering if the Merchants ever wondered about Kaleb being a Ghost and whatnot. I might've missed it, but did anyone catch what was Ena's classification and level? Just curious.

Anyway, I'm glad the book came out. I'm looking forward to the Psy-cubs that ena might be babysitting in the future. I can picture it now, Great Grandma Ena does not bake cookies, she's probably along the same lines of Nikita Duncan, only without a killing gene. ^_^

It is implied that the mercants have been a shadow power and information brokers(thieves) since before the dawn of silence. They have a certain level of power that enabled them to keep hold of their children. It was mentioned that even the arrows never got a mercant in their ranks. Their grip on their family combined with the net-mind's hiding of the e's most likely combined to keep Arwin safe until the honeycomb.

Nalini your Psy/Changeling universe is outstanding. I couldn't wait for Silver and Valentin's story and then gobbled it right up!! Now I'm doing my re-read and have some curiosities. 1.Are we going to loose Bowen? I mean we almost lost Dev's Katya to a brain "disorder" but she was saved by the K-man & Noor. Could Bo be saved by them as well or will Judd be able to save him with his tissue manipulation?2. I didn't catch what Grandmother's designation was only that she could control the gun pointed at her. Is this the connection to psy abilities that Dev also has? 3. We didn't meet Val's grandmother or even Nova's in-laws when they returned to Denhomme. Will we get a chance to meet them when Janika returns home with her mate?4. I agree that Shoshonna is too obvious as the Architect, and she was somewhat suspicious when Kaleb went to visit her. But wouldn't it be "cat sneaky" to have her hiding and plotting in plain sight? I mean, she did learn from Henry's death about being too obvious! And she is playing a good game with Nikita of win some, loose some in business. Also, will we get something on the story between Nikita and Anthony? I mean we sometimes catch them in the same room with the impression that some kind of disagreement was interrupted. Yep, that's a power couple!What about the story between Miane and Malachai? That's gotta rate at least a short story, right!!Who is the wolf romancing Alice? Is she recovered from mourning her E-psy? And I think Arwen would be pleasantly surprised by a geeky-bear romance! Are Devi and Lenid going to meet? Kaleb's Assistant and Silver's Intern would be interesting together! Oh hey, what if the Architect is The Human Alliance's front man. He could be playing a long game with Bo and Trinity! Appear satisfied with being the public face of HA while orchestrating world chaos as the Consortium against Trinity!! Ooh, who would see that coming?? Bo's confidant as the dissatisfied spy inside HA all this time!! And knowing leaked a woman's voice to through the other consortium leaders off the track.

And I have to wait a YEAR for the next story??!! OMG!! How am I going to do this??

And did anybody notice the "giant crack in the ground" between the borders of the StoneWater Bears and BlackEdge wolves ? I wondered if that was to do with the making the earth move by Kaleb and Sahara ??? :)

If we are continuing with the music aspect of the comments, I mentioned "It's All About Believin'" by Def Leppard in another post for Val and Silver. For StoneWater: "Undefeated" by Def Leppard. I listened to these two songs before the book came out, and they kept going through my mind while I was reading it.

Yes, I did notice the "giant crack in the ground". Well, Sahara did say to Kaleb that the seismologists were going to be confused as to the seismic activity in their part of the world. :)

I think that Nalini is demonstrating here evil abilities are getting worse. We had to wait thru ten books to find out who the Ghost was which was evil, however making us wait on pins and needles for a WHOLE YEAR to find out if Bo survived is truly the height of evilness

The Forgotten are the PSY before pre-Silence, and they elected to separate from the larger population. So, they are an example of Psy-Human pairing from before and now. And I think the emergence of new talent/powers will be a vehicle for all the invaluable information the Arrow and the Silence protocol have about controlling violent and unknown powers/talent. I hope we learn more about the Forgotten and their history, and also more about the history of all three races. From the quotes in the Silver Silence novel, it seems that there were Psy among the humans and vice versa. The Mercants have human lineage as well, so it could be concievable the base race is human, and the two other races came about due to mutations and selective selection to keep the mutation in the general population. Like roads in a forest that diverge -- and again further down the road, the three branches come together.

A NEW DAWN BEGINS FOR THE PSY-CHANGELING WORLD…

BECAUSE HAPPILY EVER AFTER DESERVES A SECOND CHANCE

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